


Calm Skies Within the Squall

by Katjae



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
Genre: Endgame, Gen, Lunar Children, Obtaining Fierce Deity Mask
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:08:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28220664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katjae/pseuds/Katjae
Summary: Link and Tatl bravely enter the moon for the first time, but are met with bizarre children and a calm field.  Figuring out this new area takes up more time than Tatl wants, but Link is willing to take the time to explore the moon.  In the end, however, he has to make a choice about a new mysterious power that ends up in his possession.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	1. Bright and Cloudless Sky

**Author's Note:**

> 5 Chapters Complete

One leap of faith into the moon’s mouth left Tatl startled. “Is this for real?” Tatl sank into the crevice of Link’s neck. “This place … what is it? It looks like paradise but …” She shuddered. “It doesn’t feel like anywhere I’d like to spend an afterlife. Wait, you don’t think we’re dead, do you?”

Link shook his head, but his focused remained forward on the strange children gathered around the tree. Four were skipping and chasing each other, then on their own at random, and back together with no seeming transition that made sense. They didn’t make any sounds. No laughing or yelling or indication that they truly were playing together.

“This is … we don’t have time for this! Where is Majora?” Tatl shot straight ahead, “There! That kid. Don’t just stand there, fight him!”

Link walked up to the child apprehensively. The kid was withdrawn, and not very threatening. Link looked back at Tatl and shook his head. “We can’t just … strike a kid.”

“You’re a kid, you can strike at a kid. Besides, that mask is pure evil. Those other kids are wearing the parasite masks! This isn’t normal kid behavior.”

“I know this isn’t normal.” The ground shook, or rather, their entire world did after Link responded.

“Then what are you waiting for? Hey!! You! Majora! Come out and face us already!”

“You’re getting impatient.” Link reached out for her.

“We have less than six hours before this moon destroys the world and us with it. Even with the Giants, I am pretty sure it’s going to crash. I have a right to be in a rush!” She yelled back.

Link nodded and crouched before the kid with the Majora Mask and waved to get his attention. Tatl bumped into the back of his head. The action could not have hurt him, but he scratched the impacted spot regardless.

“STOP trying to play nice with this freak!!! We have less than” –

“Six hours. I know.” Link folded his arms, then pressed his torso into his folded legs to inspect the kid further. Link sensed no threat from the child. He sensed the mask on his face wasn’t real. “Maybe we did die after all.”

“Ugh! Don’t joke like that!” She got into the kid’s face, “Alright. I’ve had enough! Start talking.”

The kid looked up and whispered, “Do you … want to play with me?”

“No! I want you to stop trying to kill us all!!” Tatl huffed. “Stop the moon! I know you can.”

The kid hung his head back in his lap and ignored them after that, causing Tatl’s ire to rise to a new boiling point. She bounced back and forth and screamed, “HEY!!! I know you can still hear me!!! Stop the moon from falling already!”

The child with the tribal mask of Odolwa stopped nearby and watched. Link stood up and wondered what this moon child wanted, since they did not react to their presence until this point. Tatl noticed him, too, then asked, “What do you want, creep?”

“Masks. You have them. Give me some masks.”

“What the – what is up with these brats?” Tatl then flew into Link’s face, “Okay, we have to focus. We are wasting valuable time and I so don’t want to have to do _all of this_ again. What does it take to find an off switch to the apocalypse?” 

“We knew this wouldn’t be easy.” Link pointed out.

She flew backwards and threatened to come back with another slam, but held her ground in the air above Link and said, “Sure, smart guy. But you can’t tell me you were _expecting a field, a tree, and five brats_ instead of, I dunno, the mask in his truest form and us defeating him? Maybe finding the source of the magic that is pulling the moon down?!? Something not out of a …” She paused, “Well, I have no idea what this is like. It’s … it’s …”

“Surreal.”

“Yeah! Ooohhh! We’re STILL wasting time!”

Link approached the Odolwa child and asked, “Where is Majora?”

“Masks. You have collected masks. Will you become a mask salesman as well?”

Tatl said, “Alright you braindead parasite, how about you cut the crap and just tell us where he is?”

Odolwa said, “Beneath the clock tower.”

“Beneath the – not the Happy Mask Salesman, you dolt! MAJORA! The threat to our world? Ringing any bells yet?”

Odolwa pointed at the child under the tree.

Tatl huffed, “So, we have our answer. Let’s just kill the child and be done with this.”

Link said, “No. We’re not killing him. What if he’s innocent?”

“What if he’s not? What if this is Majora’s way of messing with our minds? He pretends to be innocent and then attacks when we least expect it. I am not getting a good read on these ‘children’.”

Odolwa nodded along like he was an active participant, but the other three drew near and like he remembered he was a part of their synchronization, he began to run in circles around the tree, chasing one but being chased still. Despite the shadowy background of what appeared like an endless city, Link couldn’t help but feel trapped within a tiny ball that comprised of just the sphere of only a tree and a field, with those children outlining the extent of this small world.

“Is this what the Skull Kid felt?” Link wondered.

“Huh? What do you mean? The Skull Kid is irrelevant now. Besides, those freaky little quintuplets remind me more of that salesman.” Tatl said.

“Strange. This place is lonely. Like what you described the Skull Kid experienced.”

Tatl’s wing stiffened a moment then she said, “You can’t compare the Skull Kid to the kid wearing Majora’s Mask. I mean, he’s – he’s no longer part of this. But…”

Link nodded, “If I hurt these children, what are the chances that I hurt your friend?”

Tatl gasped, “They’re not him! They’re not! But… ARGHH! What do we do now? I am SO confused.”

Link folded his arms. “Maybe … we play their game.”

“What!? Have you lost your mind?!? We don’t have time for their childish nonsense!”

“Do you have anything better?”

She went silent. This world was more than they knew what to do with. Taking her silence as permission, Link asked, “Who do we try to ‘play’ with first?”

The kid wearing Majora’s Mask would not engage after Tatl yelled at him. The kids with the parasite masks wanted all of Link’s masks, and he ran out before starting the fourth challenge. The first three were annoying and Link even nodded along with Tatl’s grumblings.

“Oh… You’re out… Get more inventory, and play with us again.” A gentle breeze went through the grass after the moon child said that.

Tatl was not impressed, “So, this was all time wasted? Why don’t you brats just tell us what you want already? So we can stop the end of the world?” The rumblings of their isolated world grew in frequency and length. The Giants wouldn’t be able to keep the moon back at this rate.

“We want to play. Play until …” The kid stopped and looked around. “The others … they must have moved on. Masks. You’ll get us more masks, right?”

“I don’t have any more …” Link answered.

“You got plenty! The end of the world is here! Where is Majora?” Tatl demanded.

“Majora? Who is that?” The kid shrugged. “Well. See you later.” The kid wearing the Twinmold mask wandered away into the shadowy backdrop and vanished within the inner dimension of the moon’s world. That left only the lonely kid with the eerie Majora’s Mask, withdrawn from the others and who had rescinded the offer to play after Tatl yelled at the child. He had not uttered a word or moved an inch since that altercation, but has suddenly taken interest.

“… Do you want to play with me?”

Tatl held back her tongue a moment with a rare moment of introspection, then said, “Yes … as long as that game involves destroying Majora once and for all!”

“… Okay. Let’s play good guys and bad guys.” The child stood up. “I’ll be the good guy … and you be the bad guy.”

Through those words, an eerie darkness overcame them, and Link with Tatl found themselves in the inner chambers: a blue room with dark energy pulsing through the enclosed walls without a door.

“Us? The ‘bad guys’!? …Well, whatever. Out with you, Majora!” Tatl screamed. The four remains were removed from Link’s possession and lined up in the middle of several energy seals, revealing the true Majora’s Mask in the center canvasing. “About time! Link, end this please!”

Majora screeched after being struck and the moon rumbled endlessly with it. The Mask then transformed into a creature with legs, arms, and a cyclopoid head popped from the heart shape terror. This creature behaved differently – less composed and drew out two whips.

“We aren’t finished with him yet?” Tatl asked in exasperation. “The shaking isn’t stopping, Link… are we – is this battle doomed? Should we just go back now? Try again?”

Link was having a hard time maintaining his footing. They wasted precious hours chasing down the kids and getting nothing in return for it, all in an attempt to learn the path forward. Tatl was right – Majora was stalling, and there was nothing left to do about it but retreat and start over.

He steadied himself and pulled the ocarina from his belt, but Majora’s newest form acted spontaneously, dancing closer in a twirl and smacking Link’s hand with the tip of the whip. He nearly let go of the ocarina, but wouldn’t dare risk losing it now.

Majora’s laughter became more hysterical. His erratic movements and sadistic laughter became more unhinged. Link moved away from him and wondered how he could have enough time to play the song. The calm and collected first part of the battle was a front. If he wanted to return, he should have done so then.

He had no choice. Link was losing control of the situation and the moon still pushed down. Termina would be destroyed and so would the moon. If he didn’t act soon, they would all die, and Majora would win. He heard drumming in the background. It distracted Majora for a split second.

“Huh? Where’s this music coming from?” Tatl asked. “It sounds … tribal. Like the sounds in that first temple – Woodfall …” There was an underlying savageness to it, but it kept Majora busy. Distracted. He danced to the chaos, ignoring Link and Tatl.

“Hey! We can figure this out later. Play the song, now!” Tatl instructed.

The tribal music was louder than the Song of Time, which had an adverse effect. The bells tolling for the dawn of a new day echoed through the moon’s walls.

“It’s almost morning!” Tatl said. “Why – why isn’t it working?” They then heard the moans of the Four Giants – desperate cries failing to keep the moon in place. The tribal music stopped and Majora held still in a daze. The Song of Healing played softly by someone humming.

Link couldn’t identify the source of the melody, but the voice sounded like an adult male. It sounded more hopeful than mournful, but they were minutes until the end of the world would transpire. The Song of Time’s notes echoed far, but they were unable to reach the ears of the Goddess of Time.

The Giants began to sing against the rumbling moon, turning their pleas of screams into entreating melodies. Link drew his sword and decided to fight. They could not turn back time for some reason, so he had to honor the Giants’ last resolves. Majora snapped out of the daze he was in and twirled to avoid Link. Link decided to switch tactics and quickly pulled out the bow and imbued the arrows in light.

After the arrow pierced Majora, Link heard a new chant. Someone sang the Song of Time while the Giants sang their Oath to Order. Link then decided to try it again. His ocarina played strongly against the many different chants. In the quiet of the calm, the ocarina’s notes carried them back to the dawn of the first day.


	2. The Only True Conclusion

Chapter 2

The Only True Conclusion

“What was that?” Tatl asked, still thinking about the appearance of the moon and those weird children even after they were safe. The song of time nearly did not work, which was concerning them both.

“I don’t know.” Link looked up at the moon.

“Well. I guess we don’t have a choice but to go straight for Majora. Come. Let’s prepare and end this for real this time. I’m sick of seeing these same three days.”

Link walked over to the stairs near the small water pond and sat on the stairs, then pulled out the bombers notebook.

“What are you doing?” Tatl asked.

“I am missing a few masks, apparently.” He said.

“What?? You’re not serious, are you? We are not entertaining those brats again …”

Link reviewed all of his notes and inspected some of the empty spaces, then said, “There’s something else to that moon.”

“Ugh. You’re serious … Just promise me that this is going to end – please?”

“I promise. Oh.” Link inspected his inventory, “The masks I gave those kids are back with me.”

“I guess that’s a good thing.” Tatl answered flatly. She didn’t care about the masks or the moon children, but Link couldn’t let go of the feeling he was meant to fulfil the moon’s quests. He made note of how many masks he had and then guessed where he fell short. He planned to execute the last of Termina’s quests before returning to the moon.

With some disagreements later, Link accomplished gathering the masks he thought were required for the moon children. Tatl just repeated that they were going to face the same consequences. Tatl was feeling extra feisty but also somewhat defeated, knowing that ultimately it would be Link’s choice to see what was at the end of the children’s quest.

When she spoke with Tael, her words were different and delivered much more calmly. She understood the situation clearly and kept a brave face – up until the moment Majora gained full control and compelled the moon to fall. Even so, the evil power stunned her into a quivering mess. Once the Giants stopped the moon by the palm of their hands, Link and Tatl willingly followed the mask into the lunar core.

Link went into a wordless lull and spoke with the child representing the first boss. The child commented on the weather being breezy and nice, then asked to be given masks again. This time, however, the child made a comment on the first mask Link grabbed at random, the Bremen’s Mask.

“Ah. The music. Yes. This mask will do.”

Link remembered the challenge and made it through without wasting too much time. Doing the challenge once made it easy for him to speed through it a second time.

The child asked for one more mask. Link handed over the postman’s hat and the child said, “Freedom.”

“What?” Tatl asked. The kid didn’t hang onto it for very long and asked Link the same question posed the first time around. An innocent question about the nature of friendship, which carried several meanings that Link could spend a long while formulating an answer for. Thankfully, they were always returned without him needing to provide one.

The second child, Goht, wanted two masks up front and two at the end. Link went down the inventory, knowing that these masks did not carry much of a purpose other than keepsakes.

To the All Night’s Mask, Goht said, “Scary. I wonder. Just what purpose a mask like this serves?”

To the Blast Mask, “Boom. Do you have to destroy something to get what you want?”

To the Stone Mask, the child stayed quiet. “… … … Oh? Can you still see me?”

And finally, to the Great Faerie’s Mask, “Another terrifying mask! She is a good person, right?”

Then the moon child sent Link back after asking about happiness.

That led Link to seek out Gyorg and gave him six of the masks. Perhaps commenting on each was a way for them to waste time, but the observations were still innocent enough – but they did show some knowledge about the world that they probably shouldn’t have known.

Link handed over:

The Bunny Hood, which the moon child laughed, “Can I jump twice as high as well?”

For Don Gero’s Mask, he asked, “Music really does bring us together, doesn’t it?”

To the Keaton Mask, he said, “These creatures … I’ve seen them before. They run and hide when spooked.”

At the end of the trial, he gave over three more masks to return.

To the Mask of Scents, the child asked a more unnerving question, “Oh, how interesting. Do your other forms carry different scents as well? … … … Can we try?”

“Creep.” Tatl hissed.

Link ignored it and handed over Romani’s cow Mask. All the child said was, “…Them…”

Link hesitated before giving the Captain’s Mask. The more playful nature of the child came back and he saluted, “Attention! Hut! What are your orders, soldier!? Then why are you sitting around!” He laughed as if it was a game, but it was severely disrespectful to the fallen warriors of Ikana.

The masks were taken and the child asked about the nature of the ‘right thing’ and sent Link on his way, which left Link at the final challenge that he did not get a chance to preview, so he hoped there was nothing strenuous to this kid’s game.

Link gave Twinmold:

The Circus Troupe Mask, “What sorrow … for something so insignificant.”

The Mask of Truth, “If you listen carefully … you can hear the ancient tribes of Termina.”

Garo’s Mask, “To die without leaving a corpse …”

Kumaro’s Mask, “Dance and dance until the moon falls. Dance and dance until death claims your soul.”

Afterwards, this transitioned to a final area, full of simple battles and not so cryptic puzzles. It might have been the quickest of the trials. The child at the end greeted him with, “Your true face. What kind of face is it? I wonder. The face under the mask. Is that your true face?”

Tatl interrupted, “Great. Are we done now?”

“Masks. You have them. I want more.”

Link nodded and gave over Kafei’s Mask first. 

“Heh. Hehehehe.” The child laughed sinisterly.

Link followed it up with the Couple’s Mask, “Was it really worth it?” The child asked.

Then gave the Gibdo’s Mask and the child said, “What a useful mask. Dance with me …”

This left Link with four masks remaining. The Giant’s Mask, and the Zora, Deku, and Goron masks. He began suspecting that handing any of the remaining masks might be a mistake. These children could commit horrors with the giant’s mask if they grew in size – but the last three Link didn’t want to give up in the first place.

“Your false faces. Let me see them.” The kid requested.

Link took out them one by one, starting with the Deku Mask but stayed reluctant to hand them over.

“Hm. Not that one. He’s met with a terrible fate, hasn’t he? Another.”

Link grew frustrated with the insults and taunts, but they were nearing the end of this. He pulled out the Goron hero next and the child stated, “The plight of a fallen hero. Drowning in dark misery. You keep this one.”

Link grunted, showing a rare indignation, and presented the Zora mask. The kid shook his head. “I don’t want this one, either. Who wants to inherit weakness to fire? You have one more. Let me see it.”

Link held onto the Giant’s Mask. What could be the consequence of handing a mask like this over?

The child nodded, “In order to reach the heaven’s, you would need a long arm. I am already in the heavens, though.” The child then snatched it and sent Link back to the field. 

“Well, that was certainly worth it, wasn’t it?” Tatl asked sarcastically. “We are no farther this time around and we satisfied the brats’ requests. We’re doomed.”

“Fine. You were right.” Link marched forward. Those kids were under his skin, but he had to ignore it and pressed on. Majora looked up at them.

“Everyone has gone away, haven’t they? You don’t have any masks left, do you?” Link locked eyes with the child and said nothing. The last child did not care this time. He insisted, “Well, let’s do something else. Let’s play good guys against bad guys.”

“We did that ‘before’ …” Tatl said.

The moon child ignored her, “Yes, let’s play that. Are you ready? You’re the bad guy. And when you’re bad, you just run. That’s fine, right? Well … Shall we play?”

When Link entered the chamber rooms again, he had a mysterious mask in his hands, one with a hollow face, white hair, and strange markings on its face. There was a dark power coming from the mask, potent, and rivaling Majora’s. Link pocketed the mask, refusing to put it on. 

He got about as far as he did before, and prepared to fight the twirling second incarnation. A little farther in and they faintly heard the Giants running out of strength once more. Playing with the children ate up too much time.

“Okay, Link – listen to me for a sec. Put that new mask on.”

“No.” He shook his head and timed a light arrow that pierced the childlike boss. He ran up and finished the second form off, only for his scream to set off the next wave of transformation. 

“Oh, you have got to be kidding me.” Tatl said. “I saw that mask, Link. There’s power behind it. Use it! Majora keeps getting _stronger_.”

“This mask is like Majora’s.” Link said.

“Then it’s powerful enough to destroy him, once and for all.”

“Or it will be just as bad.” Link refused and fought as himself.

This last form was as quick as the second but as cunning as the first. The whip’s reach gave Link very little space to attack or defend, and Majora now dodged the arrows of light. They were running out of time. They could hear the Giants wails and chants. The clock tower bells rang, signifying the coming morning. Majora showed no signs of slowing down. Like Tatl said, he was getting stronger and more agile; but there was no sense in trusting a mask given to them by the moon children that could be just as horrible as Majora. If Link couldn’t finish this with his own power, then he would reset time again.

The wrath form of Majora, however, proved to be an impossible challenge in the minutes before the new morning. The stronger the moon pulled, the louder Majora laughed with a now demonic undertone to the mischievous childlike giggles it carried all along. The more he evolved, the more his malice rose to the surface. Link came so close to defeated Majora, but he knew it was time to pull back and start over. He hated retreating again, especially since Link knew they were at the final push, but there was no choice. Defeating Majora at the cost of the world and their lives was not a victory.

He pulled out the ocarina and played the first two notes before Majora whipped the ocarina nearly out of Link’s hand, just like the juvenile incarnation had done in the cycle before. The demon wrath form cackled with a cracking of his whip. He spoke in a growl, “Oni run.”

Link shook his head at the taunt and began to play the song again. Majora’s chanting swallowed the ocarina’s light pitch with a manic tribal rant, “Oni run! Oni run! Oni run, Oni run, Oni run, Oni run!”

“Focus, Link.” Tatl instructed close to his ear, with her voice calmer than usual, “Get us back to safety.”

A thud broke his concentration. He felt the force of it run up his legs and he stumbled forward. He heard a million different screams, the Giants and the remaining townspeople, then finally another bell toll. The room they stood in heated up and fire sprang from new cracks in the previously smooth battleground floor. They were too late – the moon touched the surface …

“Oni lost! Oni lost!” Majora laughed. The sanctuary crumbled when the top of the clock tower broke through the bottom.

“Link. We’re too late. We need to go back.” Tatl said. Link nodded and played the song despite the chaos.

“Oni lost! Oni run! Oni lost! Oni run! Oni lost! Oni run! Oni lost! Oni run!”

Something crumbled from above. Link heard the echo of the song beginning to stir the Goddess’ power, but a force hitting him against his head knocked him forward. He saw blackness and heard the whirling fire below consume the earth. They were too late. It was too late. They failed. They were all going to die.

He couldn’t help but fall into this depth with one last exhale. Termina was gone.

“Oni lost! Oni lost. Oni lost.” The words grew fainter and fainter. He no longer heard screams or the Giants. They were probably the first to die. It was quiet now. Everything became still. And finally, a faint echoing of his ocarina tunneled through him. The melody wasn’t real, or the source of it wasn’t. It came from within himself. One last echo of fate before it finally came to the conclusion it was always meant to take.


	3. Judgement

Chapter 3

Judgement

Link opened his eyes and the unexpected light blinded him. He stood outside the clock tower under a morning sun where he knew he could not be.

“Alright, new plan!” Tatl flew down to his face, “You DO NOT go after the four other brats. They’re a waste of time, clearly. Oh. I suppose you’re right. You can handle Majora without that mask, but you really should think about using it if we get close to running out of time again.”

“Tatl?” Link tilted his head in confusion, and the pain came rushing back from whatever struck him. Something felt off about all of this. He could have sworn he never activated the song of time in full, that it bounced back in the dark walls of that final chamber. 

“What? Is there something on my face? Eh? What’s that look on your face?” Tatl bounced from side to side. When she was worked up, she could barely float still. “Do you have that mystery mask?”

Link checked and it was with him – along with all the others safely returned, “What is this mask, anyway?” He asked.

“It’s … powerful.” Tatl said. “I can feel it from here.”

“It’s dangerous.” Link amended and stored it away.

“Well, I don’t doubt that you can handle Majora without the stupid thing. Let’s prepare. We need arrows. That stupid dancing jerk wouldn’t hold still without it.”

Link watched Kafei rush down the stairs in the Keaton Mask that Link strangely had a mirror copy of, completely oblivious that in a time now undone he and Anju reunited. Link said to Tatl, “This time will be the last.”

“It better be! … So, what are your thoughts? Going to save everyone you can?”

Link nodded and pulled out the notebook, “We’ve got some downtime. I want to talk to the mask salesman first.”

“Huh? Why?” Tatl hid in his shirt, “Fine. But I’m not letting him look at me.”

Link nodded, “Okay. I’ll do the talking.” Link opened the doors and saw the salesman, whom he hardly knew anything about, which seemed to be a constant truth to the nature of Termina and her history. 

“My … you have a full inventory, don’t you? All of these masks and yet, still not the one I asked for ... How troubling.” The salesman said with disappointment. Link feared that the man would become aggressive, but he never moved.

“I have a question about a mask.” Link presented the mask Majora gifted him.

“Oh.” The salesman clicked his tongue, “I am not sure what this is. I have never seen anything like it before. But … it has a power like the Majora’s Mask. Perhaps the tribes created more than one of its kind?”

“So, it’s another Majora?” Tatl asked from her hiding spot.

“I do not know of any such sister or counterpart masks. What a truly wonderful discovery … if they’re linked, that is. Come back with Majora’s Mask and then tell me where you obtain such a rarity once this is finished.”

Link shrugged at Tatl and left the clock tower. He had working knowledge on everyone’s day to day lives down to precision, so Link suggested that, “I will go to the temples and return the regions to normal. I’ll test this mask against the parasites.”

“Hm. Well. I guess that’s fair.” Tatl didn’t argue. Earlier in their relationship, she might have suggested to forget about the regions and bulldoze to the end, curses and consequences be damned. She had grown into a caring, consciences little faerie.

“The Giants might know more about this mask. In the worst case, they might be able to help me if it tries to possess me.” Link explained.

“Even if it tries, do you think it will easily overtake you?” She asked as though part of her doubted it. “I don’t think you’ll be in any danger. Hm. Do you ever find the Salesman odd?” She asked out of left field.

“Why?” Link asked. The answer was yes, but he did not like to be rude.

“Well… For him, we just left to go find his evil mask, right? So … shouldn’t he be … more surprised with the progress we’ve made? I mean … in a matter of even seconds, we’ve managed to collect as many masks as we have and he just … accepts it?”

Link’s forehead twisted, “It’s probably better not to question it.”

“But you agree that there’s … questions about it?”

Link looked over his shoulder and then shrugged, “Let’s just go to Woodfall.”

Since the Giants regained consciousness in cycles prior, they were able to warp Link directly to the inner chambers. The temples themselves were riddled with poison or curses after each new cycle starts, regardless of how awake the Giants were, so clearing out the parasites was a priority, anyway. He held the lunar mask in front of him. The mask’s eyes were holed out, making it hard to discern any intention, unlike the devilish yellow of Majora’s accurately advertising its dark intentions.

Link hesitated, standing just before Odolwa’s chambers. He brought it up to his face and felt a burst of energy, even before fully gluing it to his face. Then anger. Whatever this mask was held incredible rage, similar to that of Majora’s final form. 

The mask latched on, surprising him. He felt his being transform, not realizing this was a transformation mask. He screamed, silent to the outer world at first, then distortedly within a purple wave. When the pain subsided, he stood taller than he ever had before. He looked at the silver gauntlets on his hands and the blue tights on his arms and legs. He was all blue and white now. He searched for Tatl and she just stared at him.

“…Link?” She asked.

“Yeah.” He said. He recognized his voice, but it was also alien to him now. “I’m …”

“Uh. Yeah. You’re big now. All grown up,” She chuckled sarcastically, but Link knew he heard those words before. Odolwa jumped down from his hiding spot and raised his sword and shield.

“I’m still me. Let’s see what this mask can do.” A weapon appeared in his hands. He came in close to the tribal lord and slashed, throwing out a blue wave with it. Odolwa screamed and fell over writhing from just one attack. Link attacked perhaps a handful of times more – no more than ten strikes – and Odolwa’s spirit vanished from Woodfall.

Link gasped and took the mask off. 

“…Wow.” Tatl said. “That was … child’s play.”

Link shook his head, “Let’s just go.” The mask unnerved him. He would use it if they were going to lose the world, but not a moment before. Each of the transformation masks held emotion from its former soul – sadness, regret, longing – but this last one was purely rage and ascendancy. Whatever the being was, Link did not want it interacting with his soul.

They entered the warp zone without discussing Link’s intuition on the mask, and were taken to meet the first Giant. Tatl greeted the Giant by saying, “Hey, we’re freeing your friends and going after the moon and Majora again. Be ready for us!”

In their own tongue, he responded back. She listened carefully and repeated, “… Moon. Wait, slow down. Repeat that again … Oni … power … sealed. … The Oni’s power was sealed in the moon? Who is this ‘Oni’?” The Giant answered and Tatl repeated, “A … Fierce … Deity.”

“Oni? Deity?” Link asked, not entirely familiar with those terms.

“Minor gods, I think. Or demons?” She answered. The Giant and the realm he occupied moved further away from them and Tatl reacted, “Hey, wait! What else do you know about this ‘Deity’?” But he kept getting further and further away.

Instead of being brought to the entrance of Woodfall to rescue the Deku Princess, they were now in possibly the last place they expected – the moon. 

“Oh.” Tatl deflated. “We’re … here … again …”

“But how?” Link asked. They were still working their way through the first morning, not the last evening.

“I don’t know. But the Giant had one last thing to say about our Deity. ‘He is awake’. That was his final message.”

That message was more unnerving to Link than the fact they were in the moon 3 days too soon. Only one of the four children were present – the one that Link just hopelessly slain in Woodfall, though the child acted like that fact didn’t faze him. What was the kid? Was he a manifestation of Majora, the happy mask salesman, or the boss? Or maybe he was none of them, being something else entirely.

The kid stopped by the tree and talked with a man under its shade. He was not there in either of their previous visits, but his clothing and features resembled that of the Fierce Deity Mask. The child ran off into the ambiguous distance, leaving Link to approach the newest fiend on this journey.

His mouth and nose were covered by a tattered white scarf that stretched out as far as his arms would. His clothing resembled that of the deity’s armor in Link’s transformation, but the tunic that Link wore was actually a long robe on the tall being resting carelessly beneath the leaves. The only thing he did under the tree was hold a long silvery flute by its neck with its bottom part stuck into the dirt. He lazily gazed up at his new company.

“Who are you?” Tatl asked. She was met with silence. The man’s gaze was not practically intimidating. They were rather charming, actually, so light blue that they almost faded into the whites of his eyes. But what Link found eerie about this man was his overall resemblance to the hero in his adult years. Even the shape of his eyes were identical, despite the colors of white hair and pale blue eyes being different.

“What are you?” Tatl asked.

He blinked and said, “Awake. Dead. Cursed.” He lowered his face covering and starting playing a tune on the flute. Link and Tatl recognized it as the song of healing, but the way he held onto the notes and lowered the pitch made it sound more sorrowful than hopeful. 

“What are you doing here? What are we doing here?” Tatl questioned.

When he finished one verse of the song, he sat the flute in his lap, he answered, “I can kill It if you ask me to.”

“’It’? ” Tatl asked.

“Yes.”

“You mean … Majora, right? Who are you?”

“The questions you ask overcomplicate the issue at hand. You may use my power to annihilate your enemy.”

Tatl said, “So, you do mean Majora, then. If you can, prove it, here and now.”

“It isn’t here right now. Force It back into the moon, and I will see Its end.”

Tatl rebuffed him, “How can we be certain we trust you? You’re … the spirit in that weird mask we got, right?”

The Deity shrugged and started playing a melody that Link didn’t recognize, but it carried a familiar tribal pulse found in the various regions of Termina. Once he found a stopping point for his strange and somber melody, he answered, “I have no power unless I am channeled. Lure It back into the moon and follow It. Your power can best It. Mine can devastate It.”

“Hold on! How do you know we were in the moon?”

“My consciousness was with yours. I have witnessed these last three day cycles turning and returning without end. I am interested in seeing this conclusion.”

Tatl countered him with one of Link’s worries, “You want to live so you can possess someone else? You’d try that with Link?”

“I will help if called. The choice is yours.”

“Ugh. What’s your relationship to Majora, anway? Why are you here?” A blue warp zone appeared near them, beckoning the two safely away until the moon falls and they return for Majora.

“You can defeat It without me. Do what you will.” The flautist remarked, then played the song of healing once more.

“Is defeating Majora what you want?” Link asked. The flautist lowered the instrument.

“It is just an insignificant terror.”

Tatl yelled animatedly, “Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t realize that a mask with the ability to bring about the apocalypse is just some miserly pest according to you!! He’s going to bring this whole moon down and burn everything, but that’s just so insignificant, isn’t it? Do you even care that everyone – including yourself – is going to die?”

“This was always a world governed without the presence of an omniscient being. There was nothing anyone could do.”

“That’s not true! The goddess of time has helped us several times.” Tatl pointed out.

The flautist looked at Link and said, “… Helped him out. The gods have no interest otherwise.”

Link shook his head in disagreement, but didn’t vocalize why he wanted to contest that statement. Tatl was still argumentative and asked, “Okay. Why would the gods be so interested in a traveling boy? I’m not saying you’re wrong, spirit, but you’re really saying that Termina can only be worth saving … if Link deems it worthy?”

“Just look at the back of Link’s hand for your proof.” The flautist said, then began playing a song that Link heard during a play in Hyrule, while the narrator addressed some of its rich history. Zelda called it the ‘Fields of Hyrule’ and apparently it had many different renditions for the celebration of Hyrule.

“Back of his – why?” Tatl hovered above each hand but saw nothing, “Hey, don’t go making accusations like that! Wait, how do you know his name?”

Link subconsciously rubbed where the Triforce once appeared. He saw it several times since returning home, but always thought it would fade back to the Sacred Realm one day. It was well before Link’s final meet with Zelda that he last saw it, figuring that his and Zelda’s would find rest once Hyrule’s peace began. But this being inferred that it still could be active within Link. Could it really still be part of him?

“Most people who seek the powers of godhood channel it at every waking moment, warranted or not.” The Deity said with light laugher, “You can’t even tell if it’s there, can you?”

Link glared at him. The hair on his arms stood on end.

The man moved on and asked, “So, messenger of the gods … What do you think of the world below? It is damned to perish. They were never going to lift a finger to save it.”

“So, you believe the gods are doing this to Termina?” Tatl asked.

“If their will be done, Termina will cease to exist. That is why they named it such.”

Tatl said to Link, “That owl said something similar. Only someone like you could change that, or something.”

“Yeah.” Link asked the flautist, “Then what is your part in all of this? You’re a god yourself, right?”

The flautist chuckled at that and twirled the flute back and forth between the palms of his hand, before playing the song of storms in a normal octave range for it. It was upbeat and merry, but the sun never left the moon’s skies. Which begged the question – how did the moon have its own sky?

When the flautist finished, he asked Link, “Do you think a god would be spending purgatory within a mask?”

“Well, Majora’s captured in one and he’s plenty powerful, so …” Tatl replied sarcastically.

“It is a far cry from a god.” The Deity huffed.

“Majora has more powers than a normal person – or spirit, or whatever he is.” Tatl contested.

“Hmm. It certainly obtained attributes over the years, but a consciousness shouldn’t have been possible. Still, It certainly does appear to mimic emotions well enough.”

“So Majora isn’t a person?” Tatl asked. “How would you know that?”

“I know more about this world than the current inhabitants, waiting and celebrating; suffering and dying. I can feel their collective fear.”

“You sound as though you almost care about them.” Tatl observed.

“If we had met 120 days ago, I would not have offered to help. When I encountered the emotions retained within those masks you carry, I could almost … feel like I knew them personally.”

“You know them? Or you pity them for their plight?” Tatl asked.

“I am not sure. It was that latent energy that rejuvenated me, at any rate.”

“So, Majora had your sleepy mask head with him this entire time? How does one Mask possess another mask? And how are you able to exist outside of it?” Tatl asked.

“The moon. Transformations can happen without a host here, but it takes time to develop that skill. It would then be free to do as It pleased, while everything else in existence perished.”

“So, that’s his masterplan? Kill everyone so he can freely transform?” Tatl asked. “Then … so could you.”

“I could easily gain my freedom at the cost of hundreds or thousands of lifeforms. You are correct.”

“Then how do we know that’s not what you’re after as well? You could stop this moon, right?” Tatl asked.

The flautist answered, “I could destroy the moon from within only by channeling. But we would all be in freefall. And It would still be wearing your friend. Nothing would be achieved.”

“So? We could leave first and you could handle the moon.”

“As I said … I have no real power unless I am channeled.” The Deity responded.

“You keep saying your power is so great, but you are useless as you are? I don’t actually believe that.” Tatl stated.

“I am reduced to this. Take my offer or leave it. I care not which you choose, but I will see this end as well.”

“Are you sure you’re not a god?” Tatl harped.

“Termina has no gods. It has Giants and powerful Guardians.”

“So, you’re a guardian?” Tatl asked.

The man stood up and set the flute against the tree. The being was tall. Link had to step back so he could crane his head in order to meet the warrior in his eyes. The Deity said, “I fought my way through the demons of Termina to find our foothold. I was born a human, and died something else.”

Tatl asked, “And you were turned into a mask?”

“I am bound to the mask. … When Majora shows Its true form, strike It down. That would destroy It permanently.”

“Majora’s true form … Are you showing us your true form?” Tatl latched onto.

“I am before you as myself. I would be destroyed too, if you so choose it.”

Tatl sighed, “Well, we could eliminate him now – two ancient powers in one cycle. But is that smart?”

“Is it even right to kill him?” Link asked.

“You are righteous, so the right is yours.” The Deity answered, “You are gifted with Judgement – the means to make a choice and carry it out.”

Tatl chided, “You’re certainly flippant about death. Well, this is certainly not what I expected … again. What do you think, Link? What should we do now?”

“I don’t know enough about him to make that decision.” Link shook his head.

“…Yeah.” She looked at the Deity and then back to Link, “He … reminds me of you, in a way. It’s strange. The way he talks, how he looks …”

Link nodded. He knew that it was more than a coincidence. “You think I carry the gods’ will? I am not their messenger. I am not allowing Termina to end.”

“You are an instrument to their overreaching divination. You will not betray what it is they truly desire. Termina surviving or perishing only proves consequential if you die with it.”

Again, Link shook his head, but he didn’t argue. He instead asked, “How can I trust you not to turn on me if I use your power?”

“The relic in you will protect you from me. I am not strong enough to go against that thing.”

“What relic, Link? Is this about your hand again?” Tatl asked.

“The …” A faint outline of the Triforce glowed. It had persisted after all, which gave Link a sinking feeling. The whole purpose of returning to his childhood years was to ensure the Triforce stayed sealed away.

“Woah. What is that?” Tatl finally saw it.

The Deity redirected the conversation, “Let’s just say, there’s more than one way to obtain power. And this boy is more than just a traveler. But that’s not a story I have the right to tell.”

“You’re telling me you had the power of some god and we’re still struggling as much as we are? Why?” Tatl huffed, completely subverting the tone entirely and making Link laugh, despite the growing anxiety built in his chest.

“Unlike most who quest for the power of the gods, Link had neither searched for it nor honed it. It was bestowed like a … birthright. You can be trusted with power because you can’t be bothered to learn how it actually works.”

“Did he … just call you stupid?” Tatl asked Link.

“I just mean that it can’t corrupt you so easily. On the other hand, it just quietly exists within you until you become desperate. Motivated enough to call on power beyond yourself.”

Link shuffled away from him, growing ever more distrustful of how much this entity knew about him.

The tall being closed his eyes, “Hyrule was the land that accidently breathed life into Termina. The relic of your lands splashed a little too far into the darkness, and that is how my story begins.”

Tatl said, “Hyrule? Never heard of it. Is that where you’re from, Link?”

“…Yeah.” He nodded. “Termina was created at the same time as Hyrule?”

“The light of your land casts many shadows. The vision they had for Hyrule seeped in and formed this world, as if it were paint splatters from an excited artist with an oversaturated brush. We were never meant to exist.”

“Termina was a mistake.” Tatl said.

“…Correct. One world was gifted and adored, and the other scorned. And yet … how many times has Hyrule nearly fallen now? Perhaps I should count the gods’ scorn as a blessing, since they aren’t worth much after all.”

Link frowned at the Deity. 

“Do not look at me like that. It’s not as though I place any of the blame on you. If we examined it closely … Anyway. I once led the people of Termina out of a dark age and into a world of advancement. No longer do they sleep in caves or fear the winds which carry death. They live life pampered now in comparison. It is nice to know that it wasn’t all for nothing.”

“You are fond of Termina.” Tatl stated now.

“I suppose I am.”

Link said, “When I wore your mask, all I could sense from you was hatred. Your power is a lot like Majora’s.”

“If you think mine is as wicked as Its, then you are free to make that Judgement.” The man slid the flute back from the tree and took his spot back down its trunk. Link could meet him at eye level now.

“I just want to know why.” Link answered.

“Why, what?”

“Your feelings are overwhelmingly negative, and so is your power.”

“I once would do anything to survive. When I learned of the gods’ will, I sought to secure enough power to challenge their endgame.”

Tatl asked, “So, you aspired to godhood, then? You’ve alluded to it a few times.”

“I aspired to toppling them, if need be. But, as I said, Majora’s power is insignificant in the face of the godhead. At my peak, all I could do was buy Termina a few centuries.” 

“Well, don’t feel too bad. We’re having a hard time getting them more than three days.” Tatl remarked, thoroughly bitter that they were still trying to fix this world. She excitedly talked about her plans for the future during their downtime in recent days, and Link knew this journey wore her thin. She needed her brother again. She needed the Skull Kid to apologize and return to normal. 

Conversely, it was a harsh realization for Link, knowing that his time in Termina was coming to an end soon. Repeating the three day cycle never bothered him, since he would be searching for his friend in an endless forest, otherwise. He suddenly felt in a rush to free himself from Termina’s burden, so he could depart and return home, after learning that the Triforce could still be within Ganondorf’s grasp. 

The Deity conjured a pair of drums and idly thumped out a strangely familiar beat. It wasn’t particularly fast or complex, but it was tribal; a slow march calling for war or battle. The mask salesman recounted a tribe that crafted and used the power of the mask during rituals. Throughout Termina, Link and Tatl both found odd details that were also primitive, or felt ancient and forgotten. The markings painted on the Deity’s flesh and the music he played gave him a similar primeval vibe to the long lost history of Termina.

“… I think that we have spent enough time talking.” The Deity said. “Make your Judgement. I ask you for what I am sure you plan to deliver: save those below. In exchange, I will accept whatever your Judgement is.”

“Yeah. We’re already on it ...” Tatl said. She whispered to Link, “What should we do about him? I guess we can leave whenever we want to.”

Ganondorf, Majora, and now even this mysterious warrior held terrifying power. While it appeared on the surface that the Deity held good intentions, there was still an underlying darkness to him. Before Link and Tatl, the Deity appeared calm, but his power exposed the true nature beneath the serenity. The person sitting at the tree was not the true face; he was the mask.

Would he truly accept death as consequence to his darkest depths?

“There is something you have not told us. Why would I need to kill you if you’re just an angry person?” Link asked. The Deity laughed at him, though.

“Your outlook of the world is still freshly naïve. I am an enemy to the gods you serve. I would continue my quest to the heavens if I could.”

“So, what exactly did you do?” Tatl pressed.

“Power. I sought power. And obtained it.”

“And what do you want?” Tatl asked, “You can’t be serious that all you care about is saving a people that you don’t know. They’ll never know you, either …”

“To rebuke the gods. Nothing would be more satisfying.”

“I get the feeling he’s hiding his true crime. Whatever he is responsible for, he’s not owning up to it.” Tatl whispered and Link nodded. “Oh, I know …”

Tatl flew up toward the Deity and asked, “I have another question – that mask made a funny claim. How does destroying Termina make Majora the ‘good guy’ and you the ‘bad guy’?”

“… For It, that is the right thing. Then the only two remaining beings would be Majora and myself, and whoever won that next battle would take it all for himself.”

“Wait, what do you mean?” Tatl asked.

“Either I would destroy Majora and reclaim Its energy, ascending into Godhood myself … or Majora would absorb mine.”

“What do you mean by ‘reclaim’? Don’t tell me … you’re actually …”

“… I created the Majora’s Mask. Yes.”

Tatl sighed, “And there it is … You’re the reason we’re even in this mess. Why’d you do it?”

The Deity shook his head, declining to divulge any further.

Link stated, “The power in Majora’s Mask and the power in yours … they are the same. I cannot – I will not use your power.”

“Are you making your Judgement?”

Link froze at that. What was he supposed to do with this information? He needed context, he decided, “I still don’t know enough.”

“Yes, you do.” He said with finality, and then played the flute version of the Breman’s mask while Tatl and Link stalled, trying to ask questions over the music but met with indifference.

“So, Link. What do we do?” She asked.

They appeared back down in Clocktown with time evidently reset. Tatl couldn’t quite explain why that was, but she chose to ignore it for the more juicy gossip, “Well, what’s done is done. Just got to make that final push … You know you’re going to have to tell me about the ‘Triforce’ and ‘messenger’ now. … You’re going to be okay with this, right?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Majora's Mask is one of my favorite games and I always eventually come back to Zelda when I need a refresh.
> 
> This one was actually inspired by, "What if I take the Manga's concept of the Fierce Deity and Majora's Mask origins?" I ignored it in the past but there is an added layer to what that could actually mean. Although ... that is about where I stop drawing inspiration from the manga.


	4. Judgement Day: Execution

Judgement Day: Execution

With all that they learned in a short conversation with the Deity, Tatl and Link were left with a few choices. Hovering over Link in the moon, Tatl asked, “What should we do, Link?”

Link thought about every horror that one mask accomplished, with all the deaths and separations that followed, so he didn’t want to find out what a similar mask could do. He weighed the fates of not only Termina, but Hyrule and any other lands that might exist beyond his knowledge, and knew it wasn’t worth giving the Deity any benefit of the doubt. Even if Majora was stopped, the Fierce Deity’s power could very well be the next greatest threat.

And maybe, Link wouldn’t be able to stop it.

In truth, the accumulation of all his journeys jaded Link to not trusting any strange being with questionable powers. He was also tired of running back and forth through time, solving some problems, but creating a tangled mess in trying to manipulate it, poorly steering it to its best possible conclusion, but missing the mark entirely.

Link would not chance the world’s safety for yet another man with dark powers. Link unsheathed his sword and struck down the deity without another word. The Deity did not flinch, nor did he last long. One moment he was playing a song, and the next, faded from existence with all of his instruments. The Deity spoke the truth: he would accept Link’s Judgement.

Without looking back, Link led Tatl to the warp point and exited the moon with a scowl on his face. With the dawn of the first bells chiming, they arrived back to the moment they first entered Clocktown. Was it the Deity’s doing again? Or the Goddess chose to intervene at times, perhaps? Whatever the truth, Link suspected he would never truly know.

“Well, what’s done is done. Just got to make that final push. You know you’re going to have to tell me about the ‘Triforce’ and ‘messenger’ now. You’re going to be okay with this, right?”

“You’re right. It’s done.” Link looked at the faded mask that once held a great mysterious power, now completely vacant; a completely safe mask that could not possess anyone or do harm. Link nodded, “For good.”

“Well, let’s make sure we can beat this freak and move on.” Tatl said, though Link merely nodded and went along with her suggestions. The act of taking the Deity’s life … it had to be done.

Epilogue:

With his own skill, Link overcame the final challenge and eradicated Majora’s Mask of the dark powers rivaling the mysterious Fierce Deity’s. The secrets behind both masks were forever lost, damned to fade, but Termina woke to a new day.

As Link may or may not have discovered, playing the Song of Time and resetting the three day cycle didn’t change the Deity’s death – it was a permanent decision, and would not be undone. Regardless, the hero reminded himself that he was justified in his judgement and tried not to think too much on it.


	5. Judgement Day: Revocation

Judgement Day: Revocation

After Tatl asked Link what they would do, he paused and reflected on this entire journey. Link understood well that people made mistakes and could correct them, if given the chance. He hesitated to wear the mask, but took some solace in having it as a backup plan. While Link doubted the Deity would become the next Majora, he still had questions that would remain unanswered.

Instead, he kept his sword rested in its sheath and walked toward the warp point. Time reset and they stood outside the clock tower with the morning bells ringing, leaving Link suspicious over the Deity’s apparent command over time. Tatl sighed, “Well, what’s done is done. Just got to make that final push. You know you’re going to have to tell me about the ‘Triforce’ and ‘messenger’ now. You’re going to be okay with this, right?”

Link nodded, “I can figure out what to do with this mask later.”

“Yeah. Whatever you decide, I’m behind you! But please promise me … this is the last time we’re doing this.”

“I promise, Tatl.” Link nodded with a smile. Despite what might have been a wiser decision, Link felt lighter after learning about the Deity and offering him clemency. Perhaps at some point the spirit would open up and explain the whole story behind Termina and the Gods that left Termina to perish …

Epilogue:

Link used whatever he could to eradicate Majora, and the mask became harmless once the battle ended. Something within the Fierce Deity’s mask changed as well – the wrath subsided and a glimmer of happiness shined in a blue light before the being left, taking the possibility of possession with him. With the masks quelled and the spirits released, the secrets held within were lost, while Termina reached a new dawn.


End file.
